The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk Reviews

Beautiful, clean, large aquarium only an hour from the city! Pet sting rays, jelly fish, and see seals, sharks and so much more!

Loved it!!! The movie about pandas was awesome and my favorite was the seals

One time watchable. It's not that great for adults. But children might enjoy and like it there

Great fun for the kids. Try to catch the seal feeding

Amazing group teaching programs the guides we had were wonderful informative and amazing with kids!

Haven't been in years and was surprised with the renovations and new additions. Nice activity for young and old. I also enjoyed the movie about sharks that was included in the admission price. I will definitely be going back

We had a great time! Got to see the seels being fed aswell as some tricks they've learned. We also hot to pet some stingrays and jellyfish. They even have giant turtle! Day well spent.

Nice aquarium, love the seals. Can be a bit confusing to get around

Recent renovations have brought new life to this treasure!

It was extremely busy in the Sunday afternoon. Many adults were standing next to the fish tanks, taking videos on cell phones and blocking the views, it was hard for other kids to get closer. The line to pet creatures was very disorganized. Some kids were touching forever while other kids were waiting and waiting. And the parents were chatting meanwhile

I try to come here as much as I can with my family. Honestly there is something about the marine life that is intriguing. I honestly can't wait to see when they finish up the renovations, even before they finish I will definitely be going back to see the animals there.

Great for kids and those interested in marine life. Has lots to offer but is small enough to be done in a couple hours. Also close to lots of resturants.

Staff is ok. Seemed like I was bothering them when I asked a question. And the weekends it's really busy as you may expect. But the aquarium itself is great. Alot of attractions and activities to do.

The Maritime Aquarium is fantastic. We came on a holiday from NYC for the day and spent four hours here. The place is huge with lots of great exhibits, from sharks and jellyfish to frogs and lizards. We watched the feeding of the seals led to a fun and knowledable guide/speaker.

We bought the $40 package from the MTA, which included return train tickets, admission free and a ticket to the IMAX. But we weren't allowed to see the IMAX because they were only showing Star Wars which wasn't allowed with our package. Just a heads up for anyone doing that deal.

My daughter's studying to be a marine biologist. We've been going here for years and the place never disappoints. A fantastic place to take the family. Well done. Highly recommend a visit.

Great family-oriented aquarium. Not so large that you can't take it all in in a single trip.

I'm going to maritime aquarium tomorrow it will be so much funnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn
I can't wait ooh yeah oooh yeah

We really enjoyed it. Worth the price and drive. Lots of opportunities for kids to learn and explore hands on

Great aquarium! Handicapped and stroller friendly. The "Parks and Adventure" IMAX movie is nice.

I feel is very small but very interactive for the kids.

Went on a Sunday and it was packed. It was a great aquarium. A lot of different exhibits. Parking garage was a little tough but overall a great experience.

Visiting from Miami with my 3 year old son and wife loved it.

Many educational and engaging exhibits for " kids of all ages."

Loved the interactions with the many sea animals petting stations manned by staff and volunteers/docents.

Very kid friendly for building lasting lifetime memories! Enjoyed the shows, too.

Soo glad to be able to wash the hands and not stink out the car or contaminate snacks or lunch.

Soo many exhibits to see.

Wear comfortable walking shoes and roll up sleeves are the wear of the day.

Bring crayons or markers for drawing in sketchpads or use non-flash picture-taking devices.

Patience to wait in line for coloring in a sea animal of personal design and watch it become a part if the virtual underwater seascape with the other creative sea animals by the other visitors to the Aquarium.

Complete the visit by dropping into the gift shop for reasonably priced items to top off the visit. Bring some shiny pennies and a roll of quarters to make penny souvenirs to take home, too.

A worthwhile outing to enjoy in the metropolitan area !

One of the biggest parts of my childhood. They are constantly updating and making sure it is not the same. It us easy to get lost for hours as you look around at the different exibits and animals. The Octopus is my favorite. Highly recommend.

Good for children! They have small indoor play ground for age 0 to 5. Lay out of aquarium is straight forward, and iMax movie was grest experience. Friendly staff too! Wish they had little more events but my 16month son enjoyed it.

Very cute Aquarium. Prices are not too outrageous and there's lots for the kids to do. Realistically though it's not an all day event. We did everything in less than two and a half hours

Love the shark tank and seal show!! Small aquarium but very nice tanks and displays!

Had a great time today with my family. My 2 1/2 yo had a blast with all the interactive areas while my one year old laughed at the Marine life. I will be returning annually with the family!

I love this place and my daughters love this place. They have a seasonal outdoor(ish) exhibit. When we went it was lorikeets, but more recently butterflies, so there's always something new.

Nice and diverse place, good attention and atmosphere ...

Super underwhelming.

This place is so small and expensive for the lackluster experience. It cost us $50 + parking (2 adults and a 8mo) to stay for a little over 1hr. Mystic Aquarium while slightly more, (roughly $70 for 2 adults + parking) takes around a 1/2 day to wonder around.

Also the limited exhibits that Maritime does have seem less than natural - more forced than anything (e.g. mirrored cases to magnify the turtles).

Suffice it to say, if you want a good aquarium experience in CT I would suggest heading to Mystic.

A nice change from Mystic. Lots of exhibits and things to see.

My only grievance is that there were not more displays other than that my daughter truly enjoyed herself and I would definitely return!

Good, not great. Kids love it, adults won't be impressed.

What a fabulous foto op Great family gathering place.....

It's a great little aquarium for a one day trip. The seals, turtles, jelly fish and the octopus are really nice, and it's an added bonus that they let you touch and feel rays and small sharks, as well as jelly fish, sea cucumbers, starfish,...
The little play area, and the color your own fish digital sea tank were really nice too.
The restaurant offered typical fast food with nice seating.
The movies might be nice too, but not for a small toddler ;)

Great place to appreciate things you can't see every day

Very family friendly aquarium. Seal feeding and shark tank are a must as is the IMax theater.

An awesome place for kids to learn about Marine life : bonus tip: one movie ticket in included in your aquarium ticket so do watch it,

Great place. Just the right size and though it was crowded it did not feel overcrowded . Only issue was that handicap/larger stall is the only stall with a changing table so that slowed us down for a while

When I was a kid I loved coming here but the last time I went, well for starters, the power was out so any exists were closed so I just wasted my money, but also I realized that there isn't anything special about this place, it's pretty small and expensive. I don't know, it's good for kids but it seems simple and bland.

Highly recommended for families. Unfortunately we couldn't get the full experience due to a power shortage.

The animals look well taken care of. Great military benefits.

Nice place to enjoy with family or alone ... you can see many varieties of fish and aquatic animals. You can also see monkeys, birds, snakes, reptiles, and many other animals ... I will give it 4 stars because I think there is even more variety missing such as seals, more types of sharks etc ... but in general very good. You also watch a movie that lasts 40 minutes about education and awareness of aquatic natural resources ...

The aquarium was nice little small was in and out with in a few hours .

Its on the smaller end of the Aquarium spectrum, but it packs a lot of facinating creatures and knowledge. Gift shop, like any aquarium, is a bit pricey, but not the worst I've ever seen. Staff is engaging but not too much, they really let you enjoy the animals and provide information as needed.

Nice family oriented aquarium. I did the behind the scenes shark tour, got to feed the sharks, not by hand

You get to touch a real shark! The cute little rays are fun to pet as they swim past. This aquarium has a little bit of everything. The seal tank has a window where you can watch them swim from above ground or at water level. They have otters, meerkats, and jellyfish too. This is the first aquarium I've been to where you can touch a shark, so it was a lot of fun! Definitely worth the trip.

Recommend getting a membership if you live in the area...free admission and IMAX then for a year, you only need to go twice to pay yourself back, you can bring guests free, and when your kids flip out, you don't feel bad leaving without seeing everything because you can come back for free. Okay, on to the review...This is a GREAT family place. Petting exhibits (rays, sharks, jellyfish, long island sound critters), daily discoveries (swimming with shark show, seal feeding, etc), IMAX movies (and popcorn, a kid favorite), plus rotating exhibits and play areas. On the second floor is a padded kid play area. Dispersed throughout are kid games and exhibits for learning. This aquarium has all the staples but isn't huge. Nice cafe area, gift shop, and private party rooms. Staff is friendly and courteous. They even offer fresh clothes for the inevitable toddler accident! My kids enjoy creating their own electronic critter, naming it, and then releasing it into the (electronic) "sound". Also featured are a few craft areas, but for additional charge ($5). Very clean and nicely kept. I've noticed several exhibit changes and improvements in our year of being members. In the summer, an outdoor picnic area and walking path. Convenient parking across the street in a very nice garage (will set you back about $8-10).

Had a blast with our 3 and 4 year olds. Space to run, so much to see and learn. We'll be back again and again.

It was great I finally touched the sting-ray by myself with no fear, also I was with younger students so I most definitely had a great time, I thank who ever thought of the idea of making an aquarium for friends and family to enjoy and learn new things about the life under water, thank you for reading have a blessed day

Great place, kids love it. There staff was fantastic

If you have little kids this would be a great palce to take them.

A wonderful experience for the whole family. This was our first stop during a mini-vacation at Norwalk. We were pleasantly surprised to find a lot of experiences to be had for the whole family (child-adult). You can touch sting-rays, jellyfish, and crabs. There was an array of exhibits introducing new things I had never seen before. Our visit included a 40 minute IMAX movie, which was also very enjoyable. A great experience from top to bottom.

Lots of cool stuff here. Make sure you catch a seal feeding time, and don't miss the touch tank with the stingrays.

Diving with the sharks is a great show. That was by far the most captivating attraction. The staff patiently answered questions. My kids enjoyed the hands on exhibits like the jellyfish pool that's safe to touch. The seal feeding was also very nice. I liked how the museum continues in a circle through the second floor and back. It's a nice, manageable layout for taking young kids.

Seems like they're under construction, but regardless, not as big as I thought it would be, but still had a good time!

We loved the jellie fish exhibit, the meerkats. The lemur exhibit. My oldest daughter liked the shark tank.

I'm torn on whether I feel comfortable recommending this aquarium to friends and family.

On one hand, it's a very clean place with friendly staff, well-kept animals, and a good location.

On the other hand, the conservationism is too heavy-handed for my liking. I understand that keeping our oceans, lakes and waterways clean and safe is important. I do. But I also don't want to be force-fed statistics on how we're destroying the environment. I'd rather consume that information at my own pace, but I'm unable to do that here.

I didn't go inside as it was after 6pm Saturday evening. The surrounding community was inviting. Next time will come in at a earlier time. As I biked in from the Bronx just because.

We love this aquarium! Perfect size for an afternoon visit with little ones! The touch tanks are awesome and the staff/volunteers are behind knowledgeable and kind!!!

Good place for kids but it's so expensive comparing to the quality of the place

Plenty to see, helpful staff. Get a membership if you are going to go a few times per year.

Came to Connecticut to visit the Maritime Aquarium. I booked a package with Courtyard Marriot which included admission to the aquarium. The aquarium was a little small, but I loved the shows through the day and there were a lot of hand on interactions; including petting a jelly fish and stingray.

My daughter lived it. She was completely captivated at every exhibit. They had divers in the shark tank who were able to answer questions from the crowd watching them.

I love this place. I live close so I join the membership and it's so worth it. Very fun place for kids

The staff there are wonderful and acknowledgable. We did an overnight there with our sons Cub scout pack and it was fantastic.

Interesting place to visit with the family. Very child-friendly environment, especially the touch pools. The shark aquarium is beautiful and animals are perfectly healthy. It could have a greater number of other specimens but then, it could make everything more expensive and that is not a good idea because the price is fair at the moment. The IMAX cinema is an awesome addition to learn and go out inspired.
I wish there were a cafeteria with more options.

The Animals looked depressed/dead and it s a very small Aquarium